Yamaha Intros Portable Digital Drum Kit

Yamaha Electronic Drum Kit

Yamaha debuted its DD-65 Digital Drum Kit at Winter NAMM 2007. The kit can be used as a practice set of as a percussion MIDI controller.
The compact digital drums feature eight touch-sensitive pads, two drum pedals and AUX IN capability for playing along with an MP3 player. The unit also fits any snare stand and offers built in ported speakers, Flash Memory for importing songs and USB connectivity.

“The DD-65 has been faithfully designed from a drummer’s point of view, with pads placed where drummers expect them to be, making it easier for experienced drummers to play the product and for beginners to make the transition to an acoustic kit,” said Mark Anderson, marketing manager, Portable Keyboards, Yamaha Pro Audio & Combo Division.

This digital drum kit is packed with over 200 General MIDI compatible sounds, 100 songs and riffs to play along with and 50 drum kits, along with three user-defined kits, a sequencer to record your own songs, digital effects like Reverb and Master EQ, hand percussion mode and built-in ported speakers — amazing features at an attractive price point.

The DD-65 (MSRP $299.99) is scheduled to ship in July 2007 and can be used in conjunction with an optional Survival Kit containing a power adaptor, 2-year extended warranty, DVD with software, headphones and discount coupons for other Yamaha products.

4 thoughts on “Yamaha Intros Portable Digital Drum Kit

  1. To Yamaha:
    Where in Australia can I buy this type of drum kit?

    Are there others?

    How much are they?

    Please advise.

    Thanks

  2. It’s now 2014, and I purchased a set of these (DD-65), only to discover that (1) you cannot adjust individual pad volume, and (2) there is a fatal flaw in its MIDI design that does not allow you to hold the high-hat down with the pedal. (When you press and hold the high-hat pedal, it momentarily closes the high-hat, before automatically opening it again. Result: you have no real-world simulation of how a high-hat works.)

    There are rumors on various drum forums that Yamaha supposedly fixed the MIDI flaw in later versions of the DD-65, but I’m not going to try to find out. (I purchased my kit used. If you have a new kit and the MIDI doesn’t work, you might try returning it and asking them to send it back to Yamaha for a kit that solves this problem.)

    I’m returning my unit and have just purchased a used Yamaha DD-55 off of eBay. The DD-55 DOES allow you to adjust the volume level of each pad, and it DOES have the proper midi implementation for high-hats.

    (How in the hell did Yamaha manage to screw up its “upgrade” so badly? I really like the layout and design of the DD-65, but if you’re stuck with the wonky volume levels they set for you when using the internal sounds, and you can’t use this as a proper MIDI controller on your favorite software VST drum kit, then what’s the point? Argh.)

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